But Katy claims that weeks ­beforehand, he told her that he wanted to see other women. It prompted her to travel the world solo, blogging about her experiences.

She wrote her debut novel ­Destination Thailand to help her get over the heartbreak.

“I was so ­devastated when my first engagement ended that I think I built a barrier towards men,” she said.

“I suppose I still wanted marriage and children but I was so happy writing and travelling.

“People have asked if I was scared John was going to leave me at the altar but things are so different with him.

“If you’d told me a year ago that I’d be a bride again with a baby on the way, I’d have thought you were taking drugs. But I’ve never felt more loved.”

John Siddle with his wife Katy (Image: Roland Leon/Sunday Mirror)

Referring to the Four Weddings director, she added: “People joked that our story is like a film. I half expected Richard Curtis to turn up.”

She had no idea her tale would go viral when she asked John, also 31, to share it in the ­Liverpool Echo a year ago. The resulting attention earned Katy a lucrative six-book deal.

John had held a candle for Katy since they first locked eyes in a Salford University lecture aged 18. They remained Facebook friends and he followed her progress.

He said: “Katy was the most ­beautiful girl in the class. I remember noticing her piercing, blue eyes.

“When she started blogging about her travels, my admiration for her grew.

“But I never expected our paths would cross again or that I’d be lucky enough to be her husband.”

John had also been engaged ­previously but called it off after realising it would not work.

“It was pretty mutual,” he said.

“With Katy, things are totally different. There’s such a spark and it’s like we’ve been together years.”

When Katy's life changed for the better

Katy won a modest internet publishing deal with Harper Collins after pitching the first volume of The Lonely Hearts Travel Club, a fictional story about a jilted bride turned solo ­backpacker.

She contacted John, hoping for a few column inches about it, then flew to the Philippines to write a sequel. As she got off the plane she found interview requests from around the world on her phone.

The publisher decided to turn her debut novel into a paperback and flew her back to promote it.

Katy said: “I never could have predicted what followed. It was life changing, but overwhelming. I found myself turning to John. He became my rock. He had a calm, soothing voice. I loved talking to him but it was completely the wrong time to fall in love so I put it out of my head.”

The moment they fell in love

Yet she felt duty bound to take John out for dinner to thank him for his help and a week later they met for the first time in 10 years, on the platform of a London station.

“My heart skipped a beat,” said Katy. “I fancied him straight away.”

John added: “Katy was as stunning as ever, I was just blown away.”

They shared a hug, then spent the day laughing over fish and chips. Katy said: “I just wasn’t expecting to fall for anyone. I was scared history would repeat itself.”

The following week they shared their first kiss. “Things just fell into place,” Katy said.

“A few weeks later I introduced John to a friend as my boyfriend, without even thinking. I was suddenly terrified John didn’t want the same things as me. But he took me in his arms and assured me he was falling for me as much as I was for him.”

Over the next few months, Katy spent most nights with John and they went on holiday to Barbados. But when Katy decided to take a solo trip to Australia in May, John felt like he had “lost a limb”.

Katy returned to the UK in June and they decided to live together. In September, she fell pregnant. She said: “When John ­discovered he was going to be a dad he was beaming from ear to ear.”

The proposal

Weeks later, while on holiday in Bali, John proposed. “I got down on one knee and just blurted out lots of words,” he said. “I told her how lucky I felt to be with her.”

Katy added: “The sun was setting and it was gorgeous. John had picked a beautiful diamond ring. It felt so different to the first time. We both knew we didn’t want to waste any time on becoming husband and wife. The girl who happily spent £20,000 on her wedding feels like someone else.”

John told the guests yesterday: “The truth is I can’t imagine my life without you Katy, and I can’t really remember what it was like before you came crashing in.”

Katy is “grateful” to Thom for “realising our marriage was doomed and having the courage to end things”. She added: “If we were still together I’d have never written my books or seen all of the amazing places.

“My love with John is different. We’re old enough to know what we want.

“Now, we’re at the start of a new ­adventure. We joke that our baby will be born with a passport in hand. I can’t wait for the next chapter.”